DYBAR - Chapter 172 < Downfall Will Come with Scandal >
Do Your Best And Regret
“I assumed that Her Majesty the Empress was using medicine.”
“Duke Madeleine! Please speak carefully!”
The Empress muttered loosely as she looked at the nobles who were furiously pushing Duke Madeleine.
“...It’s medicine.”
The moment their eyes met, the Empress looked at the Duke of Madeleine as if searching. Did Maria Ethel really say that?
The Empress muttered loosely as she looked at the nobles who were furiously pushing Duke Madeleine.
“...It’s medicine.”
The moment their eyes met, the Empress looked at the Duke of Madeleine as if searching. Did Maria Ethel really say that?
But the flag of victory was already in the hands of the Empress.
The Empress's eyes slowly widened, as if she had heard something absurd.
“It’s purely forced. What is the Duke’s intention in continuing to bring up the idea that the royal family would have an illegitimate child?”
Illegitimate child. The Empress deliberately mentioned provocative words. So that everyone can remember Olivia.
And...
"Aha. Is it so. Come to think of it, the Duke gave a very moving speech when Vikander's things arrived. You said that a child who was only born should not be stigmatized.”
So that he can recall that amazing statement during the negotiation.
While the gazes of the nobles toward the Duke of Madeleine were becoming sharper, the Duke was alone, pretending to be noble, looking at the Empress.
Her aloof face was funny.
“Did you even ask Vikander to cover up the humble birth of the Princess? Do you think that if you taint the first royal grandchild, who never existed, with the illegitimacy controversy, then the humble birth of the Princess will also be noble?”
So the Empress smiled even sweeter. She struck a turning blow, hoping to shatter the mask of that indifferent expression.
“...Oops. The Duke wasn't even invited to the Princess's wedding. As you said yourself, even entering Vikander is prohibited. What is denial? It makes me cry, really."
Phew, laughter erupted from somewhere. Even at the end of the loud clearing of the throat, there was a hint of mockery mixed in.
Finished.
A shiver of sweet pleasure enveloped the Empress.
She defended her position as Empress in front of all the nobles. Not only was it not enough to protect her status as Princess, but it also led to the promotion of underground auctions, which had previously been banned.
The Empire was in danger, but the Empress knew well that in times like these, the hero who overcame the crisis shines. Her rosy dreams grew as luscious as her luscious hair.
She establishes a collateral line in the Elkin Duchy and is the Empress who commands the noble faction and the imperial faction. It was a moment when she smiled as she remembered her own name, which would forever be remembered in history.
“...Isn’t there something wrong with it?”
"Duke. What are you trying to find fault with?”
“Your Majesty said earlier. You said that the Lady of Ethel lied and said that she had embraced the grandson in her unmarried body. Would she have taken the medicine on her own? She would have wanted to embrace the grandson more than anyone else.”
The Empress said she did not take medicine. And Maria Ethel desperately wanted to become pregnant. Then..
“Neither she nor Her Majesty the Empress used medicine. Lady Ethel has no children with her lover, who was a public lover to everyone...”
Compassionate questions led the nobles to open up new possibilities. And the moment Duke Madeleine's tone became subtler, the Empress looked at him in astonishment.
As if living up to that expectation, Duke Madeleine narrowed his brows and muttered.
“Then it would be right to question the productivity of His Highness the Crown Prince, who should be full-blooded.”
"Duke! What kind of outrageous words are you saying?”
How dare he mention the Prince's productivity! The Empress lost her composure and became angry. His clear face was asking the Empress. Then what is the problem?
The Empress shouted without even thinking twice.
“From the beginning, from the beginning, Maria Ethel was a stone woman!”
“Can you say so clearly?”
"Then!"
The Empress's eyes slowly widened, as if she had heard something absurd.
“It’s purely forced. What is the Duke’s intention in continuing to bring up the idea that the royal family would have an illegitimate child?”
Illegitimate child. The Empress deliberately mentioned provocative words. So that everyone can remember Olivia.
And...
"Aha. Is it so. Come to think of it, the Duke gave a very moving speech when Vikander's things arrived. You said that a child who was only born should not be stigmatized.”
So that he can recall that amazing statement during the negotiation.
While the gazes of the nobles toward the Duke of Madeleine were becoming sharper, the Duke was alone, pretending to be noble, looking at the Empress.
Her aloof face was funny.
“Did you even ask Vikander to cover up the humble birth of the Princess? Do you think that if you taint the first royal grandchild, who never existed, with the illegitimacy controversy, then the humble birth of the Princess will also be noble?”
So the Empress smiled even sweeter. She struck a turning blow, hoping to shatter the mask of that indifferent expression.
“...Oops. The Duke wasn't even invited to the Princess's wedding. As you said yourself, even entering Vikander is prohibited. What is denial? It makes me cry, really."
Phew, laughter erupted from somewhere. Even at the end of the loud clearing of the throat, there was a hint of mockery mixed in.
Finished.
A shiver of sweet pleasure enveloped the Empress.
She defended her position as Empress in front of all the nobles. Not only was it not enough to protect her status as Princess, but it also led to the promotion of underground auctions, which had previously been banned.
The Empire was in danger, but the Empress knew well that in times like these, the hero who overcame the crisis shines. Her rosy dreams grew as luscious as her luscious hair.
She establishes a collateral line in the Elkin Duchy and is the Empress who commands the noble faction and the imperial faction. It was a moment when she smiled as she remembered her own name, which would forever be remembered in history.
“...Isn’t there something wrong with it?”
"Duke. What are you trying to find fault with?”
“Your Majesty said earlier. You said that the Lady of Ethel lied and said that she had embraced the grandson in her unmarried body. Would she have taken the medicine on her own? She would have wanted to embrace the grandson more than anyone else.”
The Empress said she did not take medicine. And Maria Ethel desperately wanted to become pregnant. Then..
“Neither she nor Her Majesty the Empress used medicine. Lady Ethel has no children with her lover, who was a public lover to everyone...”
Compassionate questions led the nobles to open up new possibilities. And the moment Duke Madeleine's tone became subtler, the Empress looked at him in astonishment.
As if living up to that expectation, Duke Madeleine narrowed his brows and muttered.
“Then it would be right to question the productivity of His Highness the Crown Prince, who should be full-blooded.”
"Duke! What kind of outrageous words are you saying?”
How dare he mention the Prince's productivity! The Empress lost her composure and became angry. His clear face was asking the Empress. Then what is the problem?
The Empress shouted without even thinking twice.
“From the beginning, from the beginning, Maria Ethel was a stone woman!”
“Can you say so clearly?”
"Then!"
Yes. All the faults stemmed from Maria Ethel. The Empress shouted confidently and glared at Duke Madeleine.
At that moment, a shiver ran down the Empress's spine.
The smile on the Duke of Madeleine's face was similar to Olivia's as she looked down at her.
Soon her intestines became noisy. While criticism was being placed on the Duke of Madeleine for daring to doubt the Prince's productivity, the Empress called the Duke closer with trembling hands.
The Empress asked the Duke who approached her with a trembling voice.
“What is the reason for putting up a card that doesn’t work, Duke?"
It was strange from the beginning.
“Why do you make such ridiculous assumptions about me, the Empress, and claim that I murdered my grandson when I didn’t have one?”
It won't work out. What is the reason why the Duke of Madeleine chose this reckless card?
“Did you believe that your forces would follow such nonsense?”
The Duke of Madeleine, meeting her mocking gaze, parted his lips.
“I did not aim to disqualify Her Majesty the Empress.”
“...”
“I just wanted to see Her Majesty the Empress and Her Highness open their eyes and go down foolish paths intoxicated with preserving this place.”
"Duke. Don't you know that you are going down a foolish path? Holding a hand that doesn't work...”
“Who decided that it was a no-win deal, Your Majesty?"
“...What?"
The Empress reacted a beat late to the unexpected remark. Meanwhile, Duke Madeleine walked away from the throne again, took a letter from his arms, and waved it.
“Your Majesty the Emperor. This is a letter from the Kingdom of Oslan.”
A loud voice echoed throughout the conference hall. The ears of the nobles perked up at the mention of a foreign country whose alliance relations had loosened.
“I have contacted the Tepils family in advance. Before asking for a trial to resolve suspicions, we cannot help but think about our relationships with other countries.”
“...”
“So, I conveyed my suspicions about the Countess to the Tepils family.”
The Empress sighed. Looking at the Empress's graying face, the Duke of Madeleine continued.
“The case where she truly embraced the imperial grandson, but was assassinated due to some kind of incident, and the possibility of the ‘stone woman’ that Her Majesty the Empress spoke of. These two things.”
“Duke, Duke! How dare you send such a letter to another country!”
The Empress stood up and shouted. But this time the shouting was useless. The Duke of Madeleine slowly began to read The Sword of Fierce Revenge.
“It seems like the Countess is better than I thought. She goes so far as to say that even if she had the grandson, she would not care about what happened in her younger days. But she says that if there is a possibility of a ‘stone woman’, she will not sit idly by.”
The Empress's eyes turned bright red at the humiliation of being played. Meanwhile, Duke Madeleine's silver hair stung her eyes painfully.
“It is said that the Oslan capital will also personally issue a statement regarding this matter. That is the content.”
The Duke interrupted her for a moment and looked at the Empress. Her hard red lips seemed to tremble slightly.
No no. Only when something unspoken, sensing trouble, did the Duke of Madeleine speak again.
“How dare you force a woman who could be a stone woman to be the wife of an ally loyalist in a marriage arranged directly by Her Majesty the Empress. I sincerely apologize for this... I will summarize it to that extent, Your Majesty."
“What is that... !”
The Emperor let out a thunderous roar. He wants a sincere apology...! He said it back, but it was no different from a threat to pay compensation.
He said that the arrows could not reach him, the Emperor, so he laid a board for the Duke of Madeleine. This is it, the Empire is now in a position to ask for compensation here and there.
While confusion and anger were mixed over his bright blue eyes, Duke Madeleine spoke in a calm tone.
“The situation has become too big to ask because it all happened without incident. During your busy schedule, you even arranged the wedding of Lady Ethel, Your Majesty the Empress.”
“Can’t you just shut your mouth! Do you have any basis for saying that the Empress arranged the wedding of Lady Ethel!”
“Here, it is written on a letter bearing the seal of Count Tefils.”
The Emperor suddenly got up from his seat. He came down from the golden and onyx throne he was so proud of and roughly snatched the letter from the Duke's hand.
While the Emperor's eyes were quickly reading the letter, the Duke spoke to the anxious nobles.
“Thanks to Her Majesty’s favor, Count Tefils was able to marry a beautiful wife. However, unlike the initial transaction, it is very unfortunate that Countess Tepils’ condition is in doubt.”
The Emperor could not deny it. As his trembling hands finally grasped and crumpled the letter, the gazes of the nobles turned to the Empress.
A sincere apology. Empty treasury.
At the end of the thoughts that fit together like a puzzle, the nobles thought of themselves becoming poor. Criticism and rebuke were mixed in the gaze towards the Empress.
The Empress bit her lip as she looked down at the nobles who had changed as if turning her palm over. Meanwhile, Duke Madeleine spoke.
“I’m asking because I haven’t seen that good deal in person. Your Majesty, what did you say when you decided on the marriage of the current Countess Tefils?”
“She’s quite a cute Young Lady because she’s cheeky. Since she is still young and healthy, she will be able to carry on her legacy and take care of him. What does it matter whether her husband-to-be is over 40 or over 50?”
The Empress's fingertips began to tremble.
She had to put it away. She wanted to disgrace that abominable woman who had smeared mud on the face of the proud Crown Prince and on the honor of the pretty Princess by marrying her to an old man who could not even lift a pretty face...
"Your Majesty! If the current imperial treasury is used to provide consolation money, the empire will soon be in crisis!”
“Convert the approximate amount from the territory that the Duke of Elkin will return!”
“Her Majesty’s wealth must also be used to put an end to this situation!”
A sharp shout rang in the Empress's ears. The Empress blinked her eyes slowly and looked around her. But all that was visible was the door through which the Duke of Elkin had been dragged out.
No. She's the Empress. How can someone bring her down?
“Everyone, don’t worry too much.”
Duke Madeleine's voice penetrated the muffled sound.
“It is said that if Countess Tefils succeeds her heir safely, the Kingdom of Oslan will withdraw its objection to this marriage arranged by Her Majesty the Empress.”
“...”
“Of course, if that happens, it will once again determine the strength of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the existence of any royal grandson that may have been conceived.”
The Empress slowly shook her head. Then, the Duke of Madeleine appeared as if in her sight. For the first time since entering the Great Hall, Duke Madeleine smiled and spoke.
“No matter which direction it unfolds, it will be a gateway where Her Majesty the Empress herself will have to prove her innocence.”
The shouting that came from all directions spread rapidly. An angry Emperor, a Princess who doesn't know what to do, and the cries of nobles.
Among them, the Duke of Madeleine's face was particularly clear. The Empress slowly asked him.
“...Why do you do this to me, Duke?"
The Empress tilted the corner of her distorted mouth.
“I thought we were on the same side.”
She once thought something like that.
Olivia.. Even if she vomits blood, that iron-blooded man won't even blink.
But now, imitating a good father?
At that moment, a shiver ran down the Empress's spine.
The smile on the Duke of Madeleine's face was similar to Olivia's as she looked down at her.
Soon her intestines became noisy. While criticism was being placed on the Duke of Madeleine for daring to doubt the Prince's productivity, the Empress called the Duke closer with trembling hands.
The Empress asked the Duke who approached her with a trembling voice.
“What is the reason for putting up a card that doesn’t work, Duke?"
It was strange from the beginning.
“Why do you make such ridiculous assumptions about me, the Empress, and claim that I murdered my grandson when I didn’t have one?”
It won't work out. What is the reason why the Duke of Madeleine chose this reckless card?
“Did you believe that your forces would follow such nonsense?”
The Duke of Madeleine, meeting her mocking gaze, parted his lips.
“I did not aim to disqualify Her Majesty the Empress.”
“...”
“I just wanted to see Her Majesty the Empress and Her Highness open their eyes and go down foolish paths intoxicated with preserving this place.”
"Duke. Don't you know that you are going down a foolish path? Holding a hand that doesn't work...”
“Who decided that it was a no-win deal, Your Majesty?"
“...What?"
The Empress reacted a beat late to the unexpected remark. Meanwhile, Duke Madeleine walked away from the throne again, took a letter from his arms, and waved it.
“Your Majesty the Emperor. This is a letter from the Kingdom of Oslan.”
A loud voice echoed throughout the conference hall. The ears of the nobles perked up at the mention of a foreign country whose alliance relations had loosened.
“I have contacted the Tepils family in advance. Before asking for a trial to resolve suspicions, we cannot help but think about our relationships with other countries.”
“...”
“So, I conveyed my suspicions about the Countess to the Tepils family.”
The Empress sighed. Looking at the Empress's graying face, the Duke of Madeleine continued.
“The case where she truly embraced the imperial grandson, but was assassinated due to some kind of incident, and the possibility of the ‘stone woman’ that Her Majesty the Empress spoke of. These two things.”
“Duke, Duke! How dare you send such a letter to another country!”
The Empress stood up and shouted. But this time the shouting was useless. The Duke of Madeleine slowly began to read The Sword of Fierce Revenge.
“It seems like the Countess is better than I thought. She goes so far as to say that even if she had the grandson, she would not care about what happened in her younger days. But she says that if there is a possibility of a ‘stone woman’, she will not sit idly by.”
The Empress's eyes turned bright red at the humiliation of being played. Meanwhile, Duke Madeleine's silver hair stung her eyes painfully.
“It is said that the Oslan capital will also personally issue a statement regarding this matter. That is the content.”
The Duke interrupted her for a moment and looked at the Empress. Her hard red lips seemed to tremble slightly.
No no. Only when something unspoken, sensing trouble, did the Duke of Madeleine speak again.
“How dare you force a woman who could be a stone woman to be the wife of an ally loyalist in a marriage arranged directly by Her Majesty the Empress. I sincerely apologize for this... I will summarize it to that extent, Your Majesty."
“What is that... !”
The Emperor let out a thunderous roar. He wants a sincere apology...! He said it back, but it was no different from a threat to pay compensation.
He said that the arrows could not reach him, the Emperor, so he laid a board for the Duke of Madeleine. This is it, the Empire is now in a position to ask for compensation here and there.
While confusion and anger were mixed over his bright blue eyes, Duke Madeleine spoke in a calm tone.
“The situation has become too big to ask because it all happened without incident. During your busy schedule, you even arranged the wedding of Lady Ethel, Your Majesty the Empress.”
“Can’t you just shut your mouth! Do you have any basis for saying that the Empress arranged the wedding of Lady Ethel!”
“Here, it is written on a letter bearing the seal of Count Tefils.”
The Emperor suddenly got up from his seat. He came down from the golden and onyx throne he was so proud of and roughly snatched the letter from the Duke's hand.
While the Emperor's eyes were quickly reading the letter, the Duke spoke to the anxious nobles.
“Thanks to Her Majesty’s favor, Count Tefils was able to marry a beautiful wife. However, unlike the initial transaction, it is very unfortunate that Countess Tepils’ condition is in doubt.”
The Emperor could not deny it. As his trembling hands finally grasped and crumpled the letter, the gazes of the nobles turned to the Empress.
A sincere apology. Empty treasury.
At the end of the thoughts that fit together like a puzzle, the nobles thought of themselves becoming poor. Criticism and rebuke were mixed in the gaze towards the Empress.
The Empress bit her lip as she looked down at the nobles who had changed as if turning her palm over. Meanwhile, Duke Madeleine spoke.
“I’m asking because I haven’t seen that good deal in person. Your Majesty, what did you say when you decided on the marriage of the current Countess Tefils?”
“She’s quite a cute Young Lady because she’s cheeky. Since she is still young and healthy, she will be able to carry on her legacy and take care of him. What does it matter whether her husband-to-be is over 40 or over 50?”
The Empress's fingertips began to tremble.
She had to put it away. She wanted to disgrace that abominable woman who had smeared mud on the face of the proud Crown Prince and on the honor of the pretty Princess by marrying her to an old man who could not even lift a pretty face...
"Your Majesty! If the current imperial treasury is used to provide consolation money, the empire will soon be in crisis!”
“Convert the approximate amount from the territory that the Duke of Elkin will return!”
“Her Majesty’s wealth must also be used to put an end to this situation!”
A sharp shout rang in the Empress's ears. The Empress blinked her eyes slowly and looked around her. But all that was visible was the door through which the Duke of Elkin had been dragged out.
No. She's the Empress. How can someone bring her down?
“Everyone, don’t worry too much.”
Duke Madeleine's voice penetrated the muffled sound.
“It is said that if Countess Tefils succeeds her heir safely, the Kingdom of Oslan will withdraw its objection to this marriage arranged by Her Majesty the Empress.”
“...”
“Of course, if that happens, it will once again determine the strength of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the existence of any royal grandson that may have been conceived.”
The Empress slowly shook her head. Then, the Duke of Madeleine appeared as if in her sight. For the first time since entering the Great Hall, Duke Madeleine smiled and spoke.
“No matter which direction it unfolds, it will be a gateway where Her Majesty the Empress herself will have to prove her innocence.”
The shouting that came from all directions spread rapidly. An angry Emperor, a Princess who doesn't know what to do, and the cries of nobles.
Among them, the Duke of Madeleine's face was particularly clear. The Empress slowly asked him.
“...Why do you do this to me, Duke?"
The Empress tilted the corner of her distorted mouth.
“I thought we were on the same side.”
She once thought something like that.
Olivia.. Even if she vomits blood, that iron-blooded man won't even blink.
But now, imitating a good father?
This was so disgusting. The moment the Empress smiled slowly, Duke Madeleine parted his lips.
“...It certainly was. So I pretended not to know. I was blindfolded by the Empress, plugged my ears, and silenced my mouth for all that the Empress had done, and instead clapped my hands.”
Duke Madeleine quietly looked down at his hands. His hands clenched into fists, lost feeling as blood stopped flowing.
“But that’s how much it came back to me.”
The more he covered his eyes, the more he shed bloody tears, the more he blocked his ears, the more nonsense he heard, and the more he covered his mouth, the more he wanted to say.
“The Empress knew that whenever something unfavorable happened to my daughter, you covered up my daughter’s mistakes by attaching groundless scandals to her.”
The Empress's breathing became rough again. Viper-like eyes faced him menacingly.
Remembering the time when she hoped that the child would die in that miasma, Giovanni quietly whispered to the Empress.
“So wouldn’t it be fair for Her Majesty to also be a scandal for her?”
The Empress’s face turned red. With a face that seemed to have suffered a great insult, the Duke of Madeleine slowly reminded the Empress of her current situation.
“As long as there is no Duke Elkin, and as long as the nobles of the aristocratic faction are trying to make a living, the hurdles facing Her Majesty will fall solely on Her Majesty.”
“..."
“And the scandal will spread far and wide.”
“....”
“You is the Empress who may have assassinated the imperial grandson, perhaps the Empress who really murdered the imperial grandson. If not it, you are the Empress from the Duchy of Elkin who gave birth to a seedless imperial grandson...”
"Shut up!"
A sharp shout instantly tore through the conference hall. The eyes of the nobles who were frantically measuring the relationship with the Kingdom of Auslan turned to the Empress.
“Giovanni Madeleine! Yes, you guy! You bastard!”
Not noticing that her lovely rose-like hair was gently shaking, the Empress swore and pointed at the Duke of Madeleine.
“Nevertheless, don’t be lonely.”
Looking into her cursed eyes, the Duke calmly recited the future to the Empress.
“I will be a good companion who will not disappear from Your Majesty’s side for a very long time despite numerous scandals.”
"This person! A traitor to the empire!”
At the end of an ear-piercing scream, Giovanni Madeleine slowly lowered his head towards the Emperor and Empress.
No, the people he bowed his head to were not those sitting on the undeserved throne.
Franz, whom he loved and was devoted to. It was the last tribute to an empire whose end was in sight. After a short appreciation, he slowly left the conference venue. The nobles, who were hesitant, belatedly tried to stop him, but it was no use.
“So, do you think that daughter will look back at you?”
Giovanni stopped at the sound of evil coming from behind. But no one noticed, and he walked out of the conference hall.
“...It certainly was. So I pretended not to know. I was blindfolded by the Empress, plugged my ears, and silenced my mouth for all that the Empress had done, and instead clapped my hands.”
Duke Madeleine quietly looked down at his hands. His hands clenched into fists, lost feeling as blood stopped flowing.
“But that’s how much it came back to me.”
The more he covered his eyes, the more he shed bloody tears, the more he blocked his ears, the more nonsense he heard, and the more he covered his mouth, the more he wanted to say.
“The Empress knew that whenever something unfavorable happened to my daughter, you covered up my daughter’s mistakes by attaching groundless scandals to her.”
The Empress's breathing became rough again. Viper-like eyes faced him menacingly.
Remembering the time when she hoped that the child would die in that miasma, Giovanni quietly whispered to the Empress.
“So wouldn’t it be fair for Her Majesty to also be a scandal for her?”
The Empress’s face turned red. With a face that seemed to have suffered a great insult, the Duke of Madeleine slowly reminded the Empress of her current situation.
“As long as there is no Duke Elkin, and as long as the nobles of the aristocratic faction are trying to make a living, the hurdles facing Her Majesty will fall solely on Her Majesty.”
“..."
“And the scandal will spread far and wide.”
“....”
“You is the Empress who may have assassinated the imperial grandson, perhaps the Empress who really murdered the imperial grandson. If not it, you are the Empress from the Duchy of Elkin who gave birth to a seedless imperial grandson...”
"Shut up!"
A sharp shout instantly tore through the conference hall. The eyes of the nobles who were frantically measuring the relationship with the Kingdom of Auslan turned to the Empress.
“Giovanni Madeleine! Yes, you guy! You bastard!”
Not noticing that her lovely rose-like hair was gently shaking, the Empress swore and pointed at the Duke of Madeleine.
“Nevertheless, don’t be lonely.”
Looking into her cursed eyes, the Duke calmly recited the future to the Empress.
“I will be a good companion who will not disappear from Your Majesty’s side for a very long time despite numerous scandals.”
"This person! A traitor to the empire!”
At the end of an ear-piercing scream, Giovanni Madeleine slowly lowered his head towards the Emperor and Empress.
No, the people he bowed his head to were not those sitting on the undeserved throne.
Franz, whom he loved and was devoted to. It was the last tribute to an empire whose end was in sight. After a short appreciation, he slowly left the conference venue. The nobles, who were hesitant, belatedly tried to stop him, but it was no use.
“So, do you think that daughter will look back at you?”
Giovanni stopped at the sound of evil coming from behind. But no one noticed, and he walked out of the conference hall.
Comments
Post a Comment